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ABC President sharpens leadership skills at Campus Life workshop

Last week, I attended Campus Life’s Creating Excellent Organization’s workshop “Using Passion to Change the World.” When I arrived, I thought I would be learning how to use my personal passions to better the world. What I learned was how to use other’s passions to change the world. It wasn’t what I expected, but it was well worth it.

I learned many practices I can put into place. For example, instead of assigning a job based on the position, I should assign jobs based on the person. As the president of an organization, I should pay attention to who will do best at what job and who will enjoy handling certain tasks.

During the workshop, I thought about what makes me trust a person I work with and what makes me not trust someone. I also had to write the impact both types of people have on my work as a leader in an organization.

I realized how much some people make my job easier and how I can work with others to get things done.

My favorite part of the workshop was learning how to encourage the heart. All that means is celebrating people and the things they do for our organization. Together we all must recognize people’s contributions, appreciate goals and create a spirit of community. That will not only allow members to feel appreciated for what they’ve done, but also encourage them to continue to great things for the organization.

At the end of the workshop, we did a web of appreciation to show that no one person in an organization makes it successful. It takes a village.

We learned 5 practices of Exemplary Leadership and the 10 commitments of leadership that go along with them:

Model the Way

Find your voice by clarifying your personal values

Set the example by aligning actions with shared values

Inspire a shared vision

Envision the future by imagining exciting and ennobling activities

Enlist others in a common vision by appealing to shared inspirations

Challenge the Process

Search for opportunities by seeking innovative ways to change, grow and improve.

Experiment and take risks by constantly generating small wins and learning from mistakes

Enable Others to Act

Foster collaboration by promoting cooperative goals and building trust.